Echoes of Summer

by Bastian, Laura D.

  And now, she’d made a life for herself, had a wonderful neighborhood to live in, a small home near her sister, and a job that could support both of them. She didn’t need Stephen now. And Milo was doing just fine.

  Her heels clicked on the steps as she continued her descent to the parking garage. She should have told Mr. Carlson she was leaving, but it was only two hours early, and she’d get the work done later. Right now, she couldn’t think straight enough to be an effective employee.

  Madison pushed open the door to the parking level and felt the warm air wash over her. It smelled of tires and new paint, but the exhaust fans helped keep the air breathable. She headed straight for her car and climbed in then headed for Jessie’s Grill. She was long overdue for a monster calorie splurge.

  By the time her order arrived, she was near tears again and tried to drown her pain in the pleasure of the food. It helped. Halfway through the burger, she felt her phone vibrate in her purse. She wiped the grease and sauce off her fingers and pulled out her phone.

  The text was from a number she didn’t recognize, but the first words made it obvious who it was.

  Bea, we have to talk.

  She pushed the off button, not willing to answer. At least not yet. Let him stew about this. And she didn’t want to hear the constant vibration as he texted over and over again. She shoved a cheese fry coated in special sauce into her mouth and followed it closely with another few before moving over to the extra-large Dr. Pepper.

  She knew she’d probably make herself sick, but that would be tons better than the guilt and remorse she’d begun to feel.

  “How could I be so stupid?” she whispered to her food, ignoring the looks from the strangers around her. She shoved the rest of the food away from her but kept the drink, bringing it up to her forehead and pressing the cold paper cup against her brow.

  She would now have to tell him more about Milo. Let him know about his son, and who knew what Stephen would do about it.

  Would he want to have visitation rights? Would he demand his parental rights, or worse, would he want nothing to do with Milo? She had to protect her little boy at all costs.

  If Stephen was willing to meet him, she had to make sure Milo understood how the relationship would go, but she wanted to know Stephen’s intentions before she let them get within twenty feet of each other. And from the look of shock and horror on his face when he realized her child was his, she didn’t hold much hope for good things.

  She didn’t expect them to become a family, but after Karen’s advice to think about how much it would mean for Milo to know his father, she had to admit it was a good idea. Milo hadn’t asked too many questions over the years about where his dad was, but he was aware things were different for him and that he didn’t have a daddy but had Uncle Jason.

  Madison grabbed a napkin and wiped her nose then folded it carefully to get the tears around her eyes. She took a long slow drink of her soda then pulled her phone back out. When it powered back on, she had five missed calls and text after text, asking for her to talk to him.

  He might be almost eight years too late, but at least he was making an attempt now.

  Chapter Nine

  Stephen paced his office, debating on whether to try calling again or not. She was obviously pissed at him and wasn’t ready to talk, but he knew he had to keep trying. He had a son he knew nothing about, and he wasn’t going to let that slip away from him.

  She’d accused him of not trying to contact her, but every call he’d made to her parents’ house always ended in a hang-up the second they’d known who it was, or the phone had just rung without even being picked up by their ancient answering machine. And had she really tried to call him? His new phone had the same number, so if she’d called his cell, he should have gotten those calls.

  He rubbed his hands through his hair, feeling horrible, knowing he’d done nothing to help her. And she’d kept his child instead of aborting it or placing it for adoption. A son. He would be just over seven years old. Stephen didn’t have much experience with children other than his cousins, since he didn’t have any siblings. Though Hawaiian families were traditionally very large and close-knit, his was different.

  His mother had met his dad while she’d been vacationing on Oahu. They’d fallen in love right away, and she hadn’t gone back home to the ranch, but instead had eloped with his dad. When he’d asked why he didn’t have brothers or sisters, his mom had told him he’d been a miracle baby.

  He didn’t have a family, and he wanted one. Yet the child he did have didn’t even know him. Anger at the injustice of it all boiled low and steady. She had to talk to him. She couldn’t keep this from him anymore.

  There was still an hour before he could technically leave, but he was tempted to go search for her anyway. He had no clue where to go, and though he’d found her phone number on company records, he didn’t think she’d look kindly on him showing up at her house. He was completely at her mercy, and the feeling unsettled him.

  He pulled the chair out from his desk and sat down, trying to focus on the work in front of him, but it was difficult to keep his mind from Bea. They’d been so young, it was hard to imagine her being a mother the way he remembered her from that summer. She would have been a fabulous mother. She was kind and sweet and caring, but it never should have happened that soon.

  He grabbed his phone and typed another text, but before he could hit send, her first response came through.

  I need time. We can talk tomorrow at lunch

  Stephen’s heart leapt with joy, then fear gripped him. What could he possibly say to her? He would let her take the lead and see what she was willing to do. He erased the text he’d been preparing and sent a simple reply.

  Thank you.

  ***

  Madison pulled into her sister’s driveway and eased herself out of her car, wishing she’d stopped eating sooner. She hoped eating at Jessie’s wouldn’t be ruined for her because of associating it with this whole mess with Stephen. She looked up to the window, hoping to see Milo’s bright eyes watching her, but she was early so he wouldn’t be expecting her at the moment. She brought the take-out bag full of his favorite fries and felt like a horrible mother that it was all she planned on feeding him for dinner.

  When she got to the door and Karen answered, her sister took one look at her and pulled her into a hug then led her to the couch. “Spill.”

  “I told him,” Madison said with a sigh.

  “And?”

  “And then I left him in my office and went and binged at Jessie’s.”

  “Uh oh. It went that bad, huh? What did he say?”

  Madison shook her head. “I didn’t give him a chance. I was so angry at something he’d said it all came out in an angry blast, and now I don’t know what to do.”

  “You haven’t talked to him since that?” Karen asked.

  “No. He sent a bunch of texts and called a couple times, but I ignored it.” She hung her head. “I finally sent one saying I needed a little time, and we could talk tomorrow, but what am I going to tell him? I don’t want him to feel like he has to be a part of Milo’s life if he doesn’t want to be, but I don’t want him to think he can’t. You were right. Milo needs to know him, and he’s not a creep, so I’m not worried about that. I’m just worried about him not caring.”

  Karen took a moment to answer. “You can take it as slow as you need to. Find out what he wants to do so you’ll know where to go from there.”

  Madison nodded, and a squeal of joy came through the doorway as Milo spotted her. “Momma!”

  She opened her arms and caught him as he climbed onto the couch with her. She snuggled him close, relishing the joy he brought into her life. The unconditional love of a child should be experienced by everyone, and she was glad it had been hers.

  She gathered Milo up and handed him the bag of fries. “You can eat these in the car on our way home, okay, buddy?”

  Milo’s face lit up, and he ran to get his bag and rushed
out the door hollering as he left. “See you tomorrow, Aunt Karen.”

  “See ya, kiddo,” Karen hollered back, a huge grin on her face. She looked at Madison. “He cracks me up. Good luck tomorrow. Let me know how it goes.”

  Madison nodded and walked out to join Milo, who was bouncing around by the car. “Can I really eat them before we get home? In the car?”

  Madison giggled at his enthusiasm. “I think I can trust you to not make a mess. You are getting to be pretty big. I bet you could handle it really easy.”

  Milo stood a little straighter, throwing his shoulders back. “I am big. I’ll be a big daddy like Uncle Jason someday.”

  Madison’s smile fell just a little. He really did need a father figure. Now if only she knew what kind of relationship Stephen could provide for him, it would make tomorrow’s meeting a lot less intimidating.

  Chapter Ten

  Stephen had seen Madison for only a moment this morning as she left Mr. Carlson’s office, so he knew she was here, but lunch was still an hour away, and he was dying to talk to her. She hadn’t glared at him as she passed but had given him a sad smile, making him feel like no matter what he did or said today, he wouldn’t come out of this unscathed.

  As he looked at the clock, he realized he didn’t know where they were meeting for lunch. And would they eat, or just talk? He pulled out his phone and composed a text, hoping it wouldn’t go unanswered.

  Where would you like to meet for lunch?

  The reply came back quicker than he expected.

  We could go out, bring our client list, and make it a working lunch in addition to the other.

  Good idea. How soon are you free to leave?

  Her text took longer this time, and he looked at his list of things to do, wondering how much he could put off until tomorrow and what he’d have to stay late to finish.

  We could go now if that works.

  Stephen stared at the phone, surprised she wasn’t putting him off.

  Meet me at the elevator?

  Her follow-up text came moments later.

  Give me five minutes.

  It took him seven minutes to get to the elevator, but Madison met his eyes and smiled softly then pressed the elevator button. When they stepped inside the elevator, he asked, “Do you have a place picked out?”

  Madison nodded. “I was thinking of a little sandwich shop a couple blocks down. It’s got good food, and the booths are tucked away and quiet. Plus they won’t mind if we stay awhile and discuss work after we’re done.”

  “Sounds perfect,” Stephen said. The elevator reached the lobby floor of the office building, and Stephen waited for Madison to exit first. He caught up to her side, and they walked in silence to the sandwich place. He let her order first to see how it was done then picked out his toppings. She’d already paid for her meal before the kid behind the glass sneeze-guard had finished making his. He sighed in disappointment but paid then joined her in a small booth in the far corner.

  She set her sandwich on the table then reached into her purse and pulled out a small, framed photograph and passed it over slowly to him. Stephen reached for it, feeling more nervous than he thought he would. He’d be seeing his son for the first time, and he wished he had a moment to prepare himself.

  The kid looking back at him could have been himself when he was little. The eyes were obviously his, but Stephen could see Madison’s features in his face as well. His smile was wide and showed a gap between his front teeth from losing one. The cheeks still looked round, and his eyes sparkled as if the photographer had caught him in a laugh. Stephen’s heart beat harder for a few minutes, and a nervous ball formed in the pit of his stomach.

  How could he have missed out on this, and now that he knew of the boy, what was he supposed to do? He wanted to be a part of his life, but how?

  ***

  Madison watched Stephen closely, hoping for a clue to his emotions as he studied the picture of their son. His eyes devoured the photo, but he didn’t speak for the longest time. When he finally pulled his gaze away and looked at her, he swallowed hard before asking, “What’s his name?”

  “Milo.”

  Stephen’s eyes widened, and he looked back at the boy. “You named him after my grandpa?”

  Madison smiled. “Milo was always nice to me. I was sad when he passed away.” Madison looked at the picture Stephen held. “As soon as he was born, something about the way his forehead was all scrunched up reminded me of your grandpa. I thought it would be a good name.”

  Stephen nodded but didn’t meet her eyes. She didn’t know if he was happy or upset about him. After talking things over with Karen last night, she didn’t want to assume too much. She needed to find out why he had never contacted her after she’d tried to find him. And what he wanted to do now that he knew.

  Stephen rubbed a finger across the glass. “Can I keep this?” He finally looked up and met her eyes. The hope in them gave her a bit of peace.

  “Of course.”

  Stephen brought the frame closer to him and cradled it in his palms. The sweet motion made her wish he could have held Milo as a baby. He obviously cared, but it had been so long she didn’t have a clue where to begin now.

  “Can I meet him?” Stephen asked, the hope in his voice this time was enough to make her sad.

  “Yes, but I don’t want to move too fast. He doesn’t know anything about you.”

  Stephen frowned. “Nothing?”

  Madison tilted her head to the side. “What was I supposed to tell him? His daddy didn’t want anything to do with us, and I had no idea where he was?”

  “I had no idea. You never called or anything.”

  Madison’s eyes widened in shock, and she struggled to keep the building anger from coming out with her words. “I called your cell phone, and it always went to voicemail. I left messages after the first few times, but you never called back. Your email address you gave me was crap. Kept bouncing back as undeliverable. And no one knew what your physical address was. Your grandparents were gone, and no one in King had contact info for you. We even tried getting ahold of your mom, but nothing. It was obvious after the first six months you didn’t care at all, so I gave up.”

  “That’s not true. I cared. I just had something going on and got sidetracked.”

  “Sidetracked?” Madison repeated, the anger making its way through anyway. “You disappeared and never ever contacted me either. It’s been eight years, and my parents are still in King. You could have looked for me.” Madison clamped her mouth closed when she realized she’d shouted the last sentence. She knew other people in the restaurant were looking at her, but she didn’t look away from Stephen, whose face had darkened into an angry blush under his dark skin. “It doesn’t matter now. I didn’t need you, and I still don’t. But unfortunately, Milo needs to have some sort of contact with his father. He’s started asking questions, and I know it’s going to get worse the older he gets. So now that you’ve shown up out of the blue, I might as well let you meet your son.”

  Stephen kept his mouth shut, and Madison wished he’d say something. When he didn’t for another full minute, she shook her head and turned her attention to her sandwich. She took a huge bite, opened her bag of chips, and shoved one in as well. She took a huge swig of her soda and another bite, not looking at Stephen directly. He had turned his attention back to the photograph then carefully tucked it into his suit jacket pocket.

  “I’m sorry,” he finally whispered, and Madison stopped chewing. “I don’t know what else to say. I lost my phone, and when I got it replaced, I got the same number. I should have received those calls. But the week after we got back home, my mom found out she had cancer. She was gone in less than three months.”

  Madison swallowed the food in her mouth. “Oh no. I’m so sorry.”

  “Me too. It was a shock and kinda stole away all my thoughts. I spent as much time with her as I could, and when she was gone, I wasn’t ready to face normal. By the time I was ready to carry on
again, it was time to move to California. My scholarship wasn’t going to allow me to postpone it any longer, so I went.”

  He looked at Madison, concern and sorrow in his eyes. “I tried to call you, but the phone was always hung up the second they knew who I was. By the time I was ready to return to life and thought about trying to track you down at school, I felt like it had been too long and that you’d have moved on and been dating while at college yourself.”

  Madison shook her head. “Yeah, I didn’t go to college right away.”

  Stephen reached across the table and hesitantly took her hand in his. “I’m so sorry I wasn’t there for you, or Milo. I know I can’t change the past, but I’d like to be a part of his future. If you’ll let me.”

  The comfort just his hand brought hers made her wish she could find a way to bottle it up for times when she needed support. He was here now. And she would be careful to guard Milo from disappointment, but Stephen was willing to try, and that was enough.

  Chapter Eleven

  They’d talked long into the afternoon about Milo. It was hard for Stephen to wrap his mind around the idea of being an instant father. He had no idea what to do with a child, but as he looked at the photograph Madison had brought him, he longed to know the kid. He’d missed seven years of his son’s life, and it hurt. He’d thought Madison knew him and understood his past, but when it had come down to it, she had judged him anyway and made the call that he would be an unfit father without giving him a chance to prove her wrong.

  He would take things slow, do his best and see where it led, but having his whole existence judged by a kid was intimidating.

  Stephen checked his watch again then searched the parking lot for Madison’s little car. She’d thought meeting at the park would be a good idea, and as he watched the kids there with their parents, playing on the equipment, he hoped it would go well.